HSBC and Google Cloud have partnered to expedite climate mitigation and resilience for businesses participating in the Google Cloud Ready (GCR)– Sustainability program through funding and support.

As part of the partnership launch, HSBC is financing LevelTen Energy with venture debt. LevelTen Energy is a GCR-Sustainability-validated company that facilitates over $5 billion in clean energy transactions.

Google Cloud plans to increase the number of partners in the program over the next two years. HSBC plans to secure $1 billion in climate tech finance for companies within the GCR-Sustainability ecosystem, aiming to connect with its customer base.

GCR-Sustainability is a Google Cloud validation program for companies aiming to reduce carbon emissions, enhance sustainability in value chains, and identify climate risks through ESG data processing.

During a declining investment in climate tech start-ups, partnerships and innovative financing solutions are crucial for accelerating growth and developing scale-appropriate solutions, said Natalie Blyth, Global Head, Commercial Banking Sustainability, HSBC. “By combining financing support, cloud technologies, and connectivity to partners across our combined footprints, we will help climate tech vendors accelerate their growth, and develop the solutions we urgently need at scale.”

“The scale of climate challenge requires a global ecosystem of technology providers bringing solutions that drive impact,” said Justin Keeble, Managing Director, Global Sustainability, Google Cloud.

Ross Trenary, Chief Financial Officer, LevelTen, said, “This venture debt package will enable us to scale our platform, which provides transaction infrastructure for carbon-free energy buyers, sellers, and financiers. HSBC’s global reach aligns with our international presence while giving us opportunities to connect with HSBC clients that are looking to achieve green goals.”